Caution in Attributing the Fremington Clay Series to Irish Sea Glaciation: A Case for Predominantly Fluvial and Periglacial Origins in North Devon

Caution in Attributing the Fremington Clay Series to Irish Sea Glaciation: A Case for Predominantly Fluvial and Periglacial Origins in North Devon

Abstract

The Fremington Clay Series of north Devon has been central to debates on the extent of Middle Pleistocene glaciation in south-west England, often interpreted as evidence of Irish Sea ice incursion during the Wolstonian Stage (MIS 6). However, stratigraphic, sedimentological, petrological, geomorphological, and chronological evidence, drawn from historical and recent studies, warrants caution in this attribution. This paper synthesises data from key exposures (e.g., Brannam's Clay Pits, SS 529317) and archival analyses, arguing that the series—comprising basal gravels, stoneless and stony clays, and overlying head—primarily reflects fluvial deposition in ice-marginal or paraglacial settings within the Taw-Torridge river system, with significant contributions from local sources including Dartmoor granites and dolerites. Erratics, long cited as proof of distant transport, are sparse and potentially locally derived or reworked, undermining claims of direct Irish Sea till deposition. This updated synthesis incorporates detailed records of erratics excavated directly from the Fremington Clay (e.g., Arber, 1964; Taylor, 1956; Dewey, 1910), highlighting their lithological diversity and affinity to Dartmoor aureole rocks, while distinguishing them from far-travelled, ice-rafted boulders documented on adjacent north Devon coasts (e.g., Saunton and Croyde Bay). Integrating insights from Croot et al. (1996), Wood (1974), and recent critiques (e.g., Daw, 2024a; 2025a; Bennett et al., 2024), we highlight ambiguities in provenance and age (potentially Anglian, MIS 12, per OSL), advocating reanalysis of archival clasts via modern geochemistry. This fluvial-periglacial model resolves depositional inconsistencies, confines onshore glaciation to thin, localised ice caps, and aligns with offshore Bristol Channel evidence, offering a parsimonious framework for Devon's Quaternary record.

Keywords: Fremington Clay, fluvial deposition, erratics, Dartmoor provenance, Pleistocene south-west England, Irish Sea glaciation

1. Introduction

The Quaternary glacial history of south-west England remains contentious, particularly regarding the southerly limits of Irish Sea ice sheets. While offshore evidence from the Celtic Sea and Western Approaches indicates a long-lived ice margin at approximately 51°N during multiple cold stages (Wingfield, 1995), onshore corroboration south of this latitude is sparse and disputed. The Fremington Clay Series, exposed along the Taw estuary near Barnstaple (e.g., Brannam's and Higher Gorse Clay Pits, SS 529317–530316), stands as the principal candidate for terrestrial glacial deposits in Devon (Stephens, 1970; Wood, 1974). Described since Maw (1864) as a compact, variably stony clay with exotic erratics, it has been interpreted as a Wolstonian till or glaciolacustrine sequence deposited by Irish Sea ice impinging on the north Devon coast (Stephens, 1966, 1970; Kidson & Wood, 1974).

This glacial paradigm, revived in the mid-20th century against earlier fluvial-lacustrine alternatives (Balchin, 1952; Prestwich, 1892), relies on stratigraphic superposition (overlying Devensian head, underlain by Hoxnian gravels), foraminiferal assemblages suggestive of marine reworking, and far-travelled erratics (e.g., Scottish granites). However, subsequent investigations, including a major 1994 excavation (Croot et al., 1996), have revealed horizontal bedding, diffuse contacts, and predominantly local clast provenances, favouring a glaciolacustrine or fluvial origin in an ice-dammed Taw valley. Recent syntheses further question high-level onshore glaciation, attributing erratic clusters to sea-ice rafting or fluvial transport (Daw, 2024a; 2025a; Bennett et al., 2024).

This paper argues for caution in designating the Fremington Clay Series as unequivocal evidence of Irish Sea glaciation. By integrating historical data (1974 QRA Handbook; Wood, 1974) with modern sedimentology (Croot et al., 1996) and emerging critiques, we propose a predominantly fluvial-periglacial model, emphasising local riverine deposition augmented by Dartmoor-sourced materials. This updated analysis incorporates primary records of erratics found in situ within the clay (Arber, 1964; Taylor, 1956; Dewey, 1910; Vachell, 1963), which reveal a suite of igneous lithologies compatible with Dartmoor aureole sources rather than distant ice transport. These are differentiated from the more abundant, far-travelled ice-rafted erratics on north Devon beaches (e.g., Saunton and Croyde; Taylor, 1956; Madgett & Inglis, 1987), which have often been conflated with inland finds. This interpretation addresses stratigraphic ambiguities, the minor role of exotics, and chronological discrepancies (e.g., OSL ages >424 ka BP), while confining glaciation to offshore realms and thin Dartmoor ice caps. We structure the discussion around historical interpretations (Section 2), stratigraphic-sedimentological evidence (Section 3), erratic provenance (Section 4), geomorphological context (Section 5), chronological constraints (Section 6), and broader implications (Section 7).

2. Historical Interpretation of the Fremington Clay Geology

The historical interpretation of the Fremington Clay in north Devon as a fluvial deposit emerged in the late nineteenth century, amid efforts to contextualise southern England's Pleistocene valley infills within a framework of post-glacial sea-level fluctuations rather than direct continental glaciation. Joseph Prestwich (1892) provided a foundational fluvial-estuarine model, describing the clay as an overbank accumulation in a river-fed embayment of the Taw estuary, characterised by fining-upward sequences from subangular local gravels to stoneless silts, overlain by pebbly sands indicative of episodic flood settling. This view, building on George Maw's (1864) initial mapping but rejecting his boulder-clay attribution, aligned the deposit with raised beaches at 15–20 m OD, such as those at Penhill Spit, and emphasised its confinement to the valley floor without evidence of widespread ice override. Complementing Prestwich, William Ussher (1878) interpreted the underlying gravels as Taw River alluvium, correlating them with estuarine terraces and highlighting the absence of exotic clasts or shear fabrics that might imply glacial transport. These early syntheses positioned the Fremington Clay as a product of oscillatory submergence and fluvial aggradation, resolving stratigraphic inconsistencies by invoking local sediment recycling over far-travelled ice-sheet debris.

Mid-twentieth-century reappraisals refined this fluvial paradigm, integrating periglacial influences while countering resurgent glacial hypotheses. Wilfrid Balchin (1952) reframed the clay as an alluvial infill of oxidised Keuper Marl in a periglacial floodplain, underscoring its red-brown matrix, homogeneous texture, and lateral pinch-out as signatures of terrestrial reworking rather than glaciomarine diamicton. George Mitchell (1960) acknowledged hybrid elements but prioritised fluvial origins for the basal units, interpreting scattered pebbles as flood-emplaced rather than ice-rafted. Edmund Edmonds (1972) further advanced a non-glacial model for the pebbly drifts at Fremington Quay, viewing them as solifluction reworked by Ipswichian floods into river terraces, with weak imbrication and grading to Hoxnian beaches precluding override. These interpretations, echoed in regional geomorphological surveys, challenged Frederick Zeuner's (1959) bottom-moraine proposal by emphasising paraglacial drainage diversions in the Taw-Torridge basin, thus confining Dartmoor-derived materials to braided-stream deposition during Anglian (MIS 12) cold phases.

However, this fluvial consensus was persistently muddied by confusion with far-travelled coastal erratics at sites like Croyde Bay and Saunton Sands, which early observers conflated with the clay's sparse embeds to bolster Irish Sea glaciation claims. Henry Dewey (1910, 1913) extended Maw's correlations, interpreting hypersthene-andesites and granophyres in the clay as akin to the exotic gneisses and porphyries (up to 50 tonnes) on raised platforms, suggesting unified ice transport despite stratigraphic disparities—the clay overlying equivalents of the 7.5 m OD Patella Beach. Charles Taylor's (1956) catalogues exacerbated this by grouping 'Saunton and Fremington erratics' indiscriminately, amplifying onshore ice narratives without distinguishing the coastal boulders' subrounded, striated forms clustered in head or beach gravels from the clay's subangular, aureole-affine pebbles at 2–22 ft depths. This lumping overlooked elevation mismatches and transport vectors, perpetuating 'myths' of high-level incursions.

Clarification emerged in the late twentieth century through targeted reappraisals that disentangled these suites via sedimentology and provenance. Everard et al. (in a 1960s raised-beach synthesis) explicitly refuted glacial linkages, noting: 'Fremington boulder clay overlies the equivalent of the Raised Beach, it cannot have been responsible for the coastal erratics found at Croyde and Saunton,' attributing the latter to ice-floe rafting during Wolstonian interstadials. Madgett and Inglis (1987) surveyed 37 Saunton-Croyde boulders, correcting Taylor's misidentifications and differentiating them as sea-ice proxies from the clay's solifluction terraces, with minor overlaps (e.g., reworked flints) as periglacial downslope lags. Modern syntheses, such as Harrison (1997) in the Geological Conservation Review and Bennett et al. (2024), reinforce this resolution, portraying the clay as a continuous 4 km fluvial body with pseudo-laminated fines, while coastal erratics reflect Celtic Sea calving—thus restoring a parsimonious fluvial-periglacial narrative for Devon's Quaternary record.

3. Stratigraphy and Sedimentology: Signatures of Fluvial Rather Than Glacial-Marine Deposition

The Fremington Clay Series, up to 30 m thick, overlies a sub-Cainozoic rock platform (Crackington Formation) and is capped by periglacial head. Croot et al. (1996) delineated five units from a 1994 trench excavation (50 m N-S, 20 m E-W), expanding on Wood's (1974) "twin tills + outwash" model (Table 1). Key features include horizontal to pseudo-laminated bedding, fining-upward trends, and weak fabrics, inconsistent with subglacial lodgement but compatible with low-energy fluvial or lacustrine settling.

Unit	Description	Thickness (m)	Key Sedimentological Features	Interpretation (Croot et al., 1996; Wood, 1974)
E (Head)	Gravelly sand/clay; angular local clasts in yellow-brown matrix.	1–1.5	Uniform; gradational base; cryoturbated.	Periglacial solifluction (Devensian+).
D	Clast-rich (>50%) weathered red clayey silt; small gravels akin to Unit A.	0.5–1.0	CaCO₃ 10–20%; ill-defined deformation; over-consolidated.	Weathered glaciolacustrine/fluvial clay; post-depositional oxidation.
C	Irregular sand/silt lenses (quartz, haematite, local clasts); reworked fossils.	2–2.5	Sharp contacts; no grading; OSL >26 ka BP (minimum).	Ice-proximal fluvial sands; episodic flood inputs.
B	Dark brown clay; stoneless base (5% clasts) fining to clast-rich top (40%).	8–9	Diffuse laminae; no fabrics; >1500 clasts (16–256 mm) analysed.	Low-energy overbank/lacustrine; upward-increasing dropstones or flood boulders.
A (Basal)	Clast-supported subangular gravels; sandy-silt matrix (70:30 clast:matrix).	1.5–2.0	Weak NW-SE imbrication; all local (Crackington Fm.); erosional base.	High-energy fluvial/proglacial outwash.

Table 1. Revised stratigraphy of the Fremington Clay Series (adapted from Croot et al., 1996; Wood, 1974).

The basal Unit A gravel, poorly sorted (median 3.4 mm) and angular, lacks the rounding of Hoxnian raised beaches (e.g., Penhill spit, SS 519330, undisturbed at 16.7 m OD; Kidson & Wood, 1974). Instead, its grading and interdigitation with clays suggest braided-river deposition from seasonal snowmelt in adjacent valleys (Edmonds, 1972). The overlying stoneless clay (Unit B base) exhibits pseudo-laminae and fining upwards, hallmarks of fluvial overbank fines rather than uniform till matrix (contra Stephens, 1966). Scattered pebbles in the stony upper clay indicate episodic floods, not ice-rafted dropstones, as fabrics are absent and clasts subangular (Croot et al., 1996).

Foraminifera (e.g., Ammonia beccarii, Nonion labradoricum; Haynes in Wood, 1974) are derived and damaged, compatible with fluvial reworking of coastal marine sediments rather than primary glaciomarine input (contra Eyles & McCabe, 1989). Micromorphology reveals no glaciotectonic shear, only post-depositional deformation from over-consolidation, attributable to ice-proximal loading without direct override (Croot et al., 1996). This aligns with Balchin's (1952) lacustrine proposal and Prestwich's (1892) river-fed lake model, reframed here as a paraglacial floodplain in the Taw-Torridge basin.

4. Provenance of Erratics: Local and Reworked Sources Over Distant Irish Sea Transport

Erratics have anchored glacial interpretations since Maw (1864), who correlated inland boulders with coastal examples at Croyde Bay. However, a critical distinction must be drawn between the sparse erratics documented in situ within the Fremington Clay itself (e.g., Arber, 1964; Taylor, 1956; Dewey, 1910) and the more numerous, far-travelled ice-rafted boulders on adjacent north Devon beaches (e.g., Saunton and Croyde Bay; Taylor, 1956; Madgett & Inglis, 1987). The latter, often lumped together in glacial models, include unambiguous Scottish and Irish Sea lithologies (e.g., Ailsa Craig microgranite, Purbeck flint) deposited via sea-ice rafting or storm transport during lowstands, but these are absent or rare inland. In contrast, the clay-embedded erratics—primarily igneous types excavated from depths of 2–22 ft within the clay—are dominated by local to regional sources, particularly from the Dartmoor aureole (e.g., Permian-Triassic dolerite dykes, Variscan granites), mobilised via fluvial or periglacial processes.

Petrological inventories of clay-embedded erratics (Table 2, updated with in situ records from Dewey and Taylor) list igneous/metamorphic types (dolerite, granophyre, andesite) amid dominant local Devonian-Carboniferous clasts (>99%; Croot et al., 1996). Dewey (1910) and Taylor (1956) provide detailed thin-section analyses, confirming igneous dominance (e.g., spilitic textures in No. 6, ophitic in No. 10) with local affinities, such as Cornish spilites or Devon dykes, while noting morphological resemblances to Scottish types without geochemical confirmation. For instance, quartz-dolerites and olivine-dolerites match Meldon Chert Formation dykes, while hypersthene-andesites and granophyres evoke Dartmoor elvans and aureole rocks, distinguishable from Irish Sea equivalents via mineralogy (e.g., titaniferous augite in alkali micro-dolerites; Gilbert, pers. comm. in Croot et al., 1996). No. 8, an overlooked altered quartz porphyry from Fishley, exemplifies potential aureole sourcing, with epidote and apatite evoking Variscan intrusions mobilised via Taw floods.

Erratic No. / Location	Lithology / Type	Description & Notes	Proposed Glacial Source	Alternative Local/Regional Source (e.g., Dartmoor Aureole)	Key References
6 (Combrew Farm/Bickington)	Spilite (vesicular granophyre)	40×30×25 in; dark grey, porphyritic albite felspars, micropegmatite groundmass, chlorite-replaced ferromagnesian, secondary granophyric vesicles with calcite; no striae. Isolated in middle of clay-bed.	Irish Sea (Scotland).	N. Cornwall spilites (Crinan pillow-lava type) or Dartmoor volcanics.	Dewey (1910); Taylor (1956); Arber (1964).
7 (Combrew Farm/Chilcotts)	Hypersthene-andesite (hyalopilitic)	16 in across; dark grey-green, glassy porphyritic acid labradorite (zoned, twinned), hypersthene prisms (pleochroic), magnetite gridiron in brown glass base; no augite/olivine. ~22 ft below surface, c. 1870.	Irish Sea (Dumfries/Argyll).	Dartmoor elvan intrusions or W. Devon dykes.	Dewey (1910); Taylor (1956); Arber (1964).
8 (Fishley Pottery, near Combrew)	Altered quartz porphyry	47×19×16 in; light grey, holocrystalline granitic texture, phenocrystic quartz/felspar (up to 5 mm); crushed plagioclase, apatite prisms, red amorphous matrix, epidote. From clay-pit.	N/A (local?).	Porphyritic dyke W. of Devon/Cornwall coasts; Dartmoor aureole.	Taylor (1956).
9 (Brannam's pits)	Quartz-dolerite	c. 300 lb, ellipsoidal; grey, fine-grained, kaolinized felspar laths, primary quartz, fresh reddish augite, apatite needles, magnetite/calcite. In middle of brown clay.	Irish Sea (Scotland).	Dartmoor Permian-Triassic dykes (Meldon).	Taylor (1956); Arber (1964).
10 (Brannam's pits)	Olivine-dolerite	c. 300 lb, angular; darker grey, micro-pegmatitic ophitic, yellow olivine, ilmenite prisms, plagioclase tabs, slight quartz orientation. In brown clay; common Devon type.	Irish Sea.	Dartmoor olivine-bearing intrusions.	Taylor (1956); Arber (1964).
(Brannam's, 17 ft depth)	Olivine-dolerite pebble & Carboniferous grit slab	2-in rounded pebble (as No. 10); 5×1.25 in slab with red ferric oxide skin along cracks (post-inclusion infiltration).	N/A.	Local fluvial rework (pre-embedding waterworn).	Taylor (1956).
13 (Brannam's pits, 1962)	Quartz-dolerite	10 ft from top of clay.	Irish Sea (Scotland).	Dartmoor dykes.	Taylor (1956); Vachell (1963); Arber (1964).
(Higher Gorse, Plymouth 1994)	Alkali micro-dolerite	Small striated boulder in main clay unit; plagioclase phenocrysts, titaniferous augite, vesicles.	Irish Sea.	Dartmoor micro-dolerite variants.	Croot et al. (1996).
(Pen Hill, Taw Estuary)	Trachy-andesite	Partially buried in beach/estuarine sand (not in situ in clay).	Irish Sea.	Regional andesitic flows; fluvial rework.	Croot et al. (1996).
(Arber 1964, post-1957)	Dolerite and granodiorite	Removed boulders, originally inside clay; later identified.	Irish Sea.	Dartmoor aureole dolerite/granodiorite.	Arber (1964); Wood (1973).
(General Fremington area)	Spilite, grey elvan, quartz/olivine dolerite	Multiple small pebbles (50+), embedded 5–11 ft above base or at top/base.	Irish Sea.	Dartmoor aureole (elvan, spilite-like volcanics).	Taylor (1956); Croot et al. (1996); Arber (1964).

Table 2. In situ erratics in the Fremington Clay Series: Lithologies, descriptions, and alternative provenances (updated with Dewey, 1910; Taylor, 1956 records; excludes coastal ice-rafted boulders).

Sparse exotics (<1% >1.5 cm) occur as subangular pebbles or rare striated cobbles (e.g., single microdolerite at 4 m depth; Croot et al., 1996), embedded at low elevations (10–26 m OD). Granites match Dartmoor's Carboniferous pluton, mobilisable via periglacial clitter slopes and Taw entrainment (Evans et al., 2012). Dolerites align with local intrusions, distinguishable from northern equivalents via U-Pb/Hf isotopes—untested on archives (e.g., >1500 clasts at Plymouth University; Taylor's thin-sections at Cambridge). Flints and schorlrocks suggest short-distance fluvial/marine reworking, not ice-sheet transport (Daw, 2024a). Recent syntheses and petrological reappraisals continue to support a predominantly local or regional provenance, with the Dartmoor pluton and its aureole emerging as the most parsimonious source (Bennett et al., 2024). Even for enigmatic types like No. 6 and No. 7, Dartmoor affinities remain viable, with geochemical tracers recommended for confirmation (Daw, 2025a).

This profile favours hybrid fluvial-periglacial input: Taw-Torridge floods exported Dartmoor debris alongside local slates, explaining weak NW-SE fabrics without Irish Sea signatures. Rarity of true exotics (no chalk, minimal Scottish gneiss) and lack of concentration gradients refute sheet glaciation (Bennett et al., 2024), particularly when coastal rafted erratics are excluded.

5. Geomorphological Context: Ice-Marginal Rivers and Dartmoor Influence

The Taw-Torridge landscape evidences fluvial dominance. Wolstonian ice diversion blocked the estuary, reversing flow westward and damming a ~30 m OD lake graded to the third terrace (Edmonds, 1972; Stephens, 1966). This braided system, fed by Dartmoor meltwaters, deposited the Clay Series in a subsiding basin (Fig. 1, conceptual). Subtle Dartmoor moraines (Slipper Stones; Evans et al., 2012) imply thin, cold-based ice (<50 m thick), enhancing tors and dry valleys via frost action rather than erosion (Ballantyne & Harris, 1994).

Inland confinement (valley floors, 24 m deep at Roundswell) and absence of coastal drapes contradict glaciomarine models (Eyles & McCabe, 1989; contra Lambeck, 1995 sea-level constraints). Offshore tills correlate via palaeo-channels, but onshore, periglacial head and terraces prevail.

6. Chronological Constraints: Pre-Wolstonian Ages and Model Conflicts

OSL dating places Units B–C at >424 ka BP (Anglian, MIS 12; Croot et al., 1996), predating Wolstonian correlations (Stephens, 1970) and refuting Late Devensian glaciomarine flooding (Bowen, 1994). This aligns with Hoxnian underlain gravels but challenges Irish Sea synchrony with Scilly/Trebetherick "tills" (local at Trebetherick; Wood, 1973; Devensian at Scilly; Scourse, 1991). Variability in terrace grading (four levels; Edmonds, 1972) suggests multiple cold phases, with Fremington as Anglian fluvial legacy reworked in Wolstonian.

7. Broader Implications and Recommendations for Future Research

Attributing Fremington to Irish Sea ice has inflated onshore limits, sustaining "myths" of high-level glaciation (Daw, 2024a; John, 2024). A fluvial model confines ice to Bristol Channel seas, resolves erratic transport for megaliths, and emphasises periglacial valley carving (Bennett et al., 2024). It negates claims like Baggy Point's epidiorite (~80 m OD; Madgett & Madgett, 1974), reframed as fluvial or sea-ice.

Future work: Geochemical provenance (U-Pb on granites/dolerites); cosmogenic dating of terraces; re-excavation for intact faunas. This cautionary stance prioritises parsimony, highlighting Devon's fluvial sensitivity.

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